he current events in Nigeria remind me of an article I wrote, which was published on Nigeriaworld.com, as far back as August 2003. The caption was “Why would anyone want to die for Nigeria?” My contention then was that many in Nigeria do not feel like they have a true stake in the country, a stake strong enough for them to be willing to die for Nigeria. Even some in the military and police, whose job is basically to put their lives on the line, do so because they have to, not because they really want to. Looking back, almost 20 years since that article aired, the situation in Nigeria is still the same.

Many see Nigeria as a distant communal “cake” reserved only for a few. That few has the ability to give bits and pieces of the cake to those they choose. These privileged few beat the drum of patriotism all the time, cloak themselves in dresses emblazoned with Nigeria’s colors and pretend to be the most patriotic. Yet, deep down, their only incentive is continued access to the cake called Nigeria by dint of their ethnicity or political connections.

If you call their attention to the fact that Nigeria is not quite working for all Nigerians, especially the less privileged and hence needs restructuring, to give everyone a stake in the “communal cake”, they will climb all over you, shout you down and call for your head. As they remain perched on their ivory towers, they fail to see or acknowledge the plight of the suffering masses.

Because they have constant electricity, even if through generators; because they can afford “4-square” meals a day, mainly through money milked from the national treasury; because they can go overseas for medical treatment even for the common cold; because they can send their children to the best schools outside Nigeria or elite schools in Nigeria; because they can afford private jets and can be chauffeured around in convoys and hence never face the onslaught of robbers or kidnappers that terrorize other citizens, they always aver that everything is great in Nigeria. They do not want anything to change.

I once narrated a story relayed by Dr Tonye David West in one of his writings on Nigeriaworld.com. It was titled - “This is the Story of Sahab and I”. Dr David West talked about his friend from northern Nigeria. Sahab went to school with Dr West here in the United States. He described how the man got an excellent job in Nigeria even before he finished his degree program. Many Nigerians from other parts of Nigeria cannot boast of the same treatment.

Many people from the Southeast, Southwest and South South that live in the Diaspora today, are here because they have no opportunities back in Nigeria. Some may deny it, but it is the truth! In my more than three decades of sojourn in the United States, I have met Nigerians of all ethnic persuasion in great numbers, but I have only met a handful of people of northern Nigeria extraction. This is not an accident. It is because the few people from Northern Nigeria who go to school here always return after their schoolwork. Back in Nigeria, they are almost guaranteed plum government jobs. Inotherwords their ethnicity guarantees them immediate success in Nigeria!

The current president is exacerbating this problem through his actions and policies. He once told horrified Nigerians that he will concentrate on those who voted for him. Who are those? Of course we know who. Yes, mainly people from his ethnic origin.

When a bridge as important as the 2nd Niger bridge is advancing at snail speed because it is in the east; when major national appointments favor mainly those from a certain region; when planned major rail lines seemingly side track the South East, many scoff at the thought of dying for Nigeria. Why would such people, disappointed and disenchanted in the system, be patriotic? Why would they want to keep on trying to make sacrifices for the nation when the system shows them that they have nothing to gain? Why would anyone want to die for a nation that provides unequal opportunity for its citizens?”

A restructured system where no particular ethnic group or region preponderates over others, where everyone has equal share and access to the "national cake" will begin to correct injustices and give everyone a stake strong enough to want to die for Nigeria.

In the pictures, the reader will behold the faces of average Nigerians. They want a Nigeria that creates hope for them. A Nigeria that gives them a sense of belonging and purpose.

HERE I STAND!

Alfred Obiora Uzokwe is a professional engineer licensed to practice in the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland and Washington DC and has over 33 years of combined architectural and engineering experience in both Nigeria and the United States.

Author of the books- 1. Nigeria: Contemporary Commentaries and Essays

2. Surviving in Biafra: The Story of the Nigerian Civil War